


Кошеня (Kitten)

by Wonder_Pumpkin



Category: Captain America (Comics), Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Bucky Barnes Feels, Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, Bucky Barnes gets a cat, Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mentions of Past Torture, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Steve really loves Bucky, mentions of animal abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-10
Updated: 2014-10-10
Packaged: 2018-02-20 15:13:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,173
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2433398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wonder_Pumpkin/pseuds/Wonder_Pumpkin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The cat was a stray, had been subjected to a life of abuse, and this made Bucky feel attatched to the cat for some unknown reason.</p><p>Then it clicked;</p><p>He and the stray were both victims.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Кошеня (Kitten)

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is a result of me reading a really sad article that made me cry for a good 10 minutes, because I'm a sensitive sod. However, it inspired me to write a quick fic in the 45-minute timespan before my work shift.
> 
> Regarding the animal abuse, I tried not to become too in-depth, as such a topic causes me a lot of distress irl and I can't deal with too much of it.
> 
> Hopefully, you enjoy.
> 
> *****
> 
> WARNING - This fic contains mentions of animal abuse. The author advises that the reader proceeds at his/her own discretion.

Bucky had seen the cat before.

 

The first time he saw the stray, it was skulking around the block of flats that Steve lived in; it would bravely slink up to a resident, a painfully hopeful look in it's big green eyes. The young woman scowled at it, before kicking it in the ribs, sending the small thing flying.

 

It made him wince.

 

The second time; about three days later, he watched the cat try to follow an old man inside, but was unsuccessful, and Bucky flinched at the cat's screech as it's front paws were purposely shut in the man's door.

 

The stray managed to pull his paws free, but they were bloodied.

 

From that day on, every day Bucky saw the cat, he would watch silently as the stray was abused by the other residents of the block; he witnessed people throw rocks at it, toss boiling hot water at it, kick and throw all sorts of abuse at the stray cat.

 

In his mind, Bucky had named the stray 'Koshenya.'

 

Despite the distress that watching Koshenya's abuse brought him, Bucky did not know what to do about it, regardless of his own experiences with harsh treatment. He tried to remember what he wanted when he was left screaming in pain, but he couldn't.

 

However, the day when he heard a parent tell her child to steer clear of Koshenya because he was 'diseased, disgusting animal with no right to live,' was the day that Bucky vowed to take Koshenya in, for Bucky did not see a 'disgusting' or 'diseased' kitten, he saw a victim who was in desperate need of love and affection.

 

Like himself.

 

But he didn't want to wait.

 

He spent most of the night searching for Koshenya, shivering in the rain that drenched him to his core, but the brunette did not give up; he needed to find his kitten.

 

A pained screech caught his attention, and Bucky found himself running towards a park, where a dog was mauling Koshenya.

 

He saw red, and he punched the Rottweilier with his metal hand, the dog whimpering and fleeing, leaving Bucky and his cat alone.

 

Even in the dim light the nearby lampost provided, Bucky could see the damage that the dog had inflicted on Koshenya.

 

The cat's front left leg was shredded and twisted. Several lacerations ran down the kitten's back and his right ear had been torn off.

 

Bucky sobbed, and lifting the cat up, he rushed - on foot - to the nearest vet.

 

He burst in, babbling to the woman at the front desk, and a Vet rushed out to take the barely-alive Koshenya from his arms, promising to do everything he could to save the cat.

 

Still distressed and deeply upset, Bucky called Steve, explaining everything through his sobs, and the blonde promised to be there soon.

 

And he was, the large Captain stan...

 

"Buck, what happened?" He asked softly, kneeling down in front of his lover and grasping blood-spattered hands in his own, thumbs rubbing over flesh and metal.

 

The brunette shook his head, sobbing softly and Steve brought the man close, rubbing his back through soaked clothes, letting the man cry softly.

 

The two stayed locked in embrace for the whole night; Steve maneuvered himself so he was sitting in the chair, Bucky sitting curled in his lap, crying over the stray and how unfair it was that such an innocent creature had been forced to suffer so much; how he hated himself for acting as a bystander for so long when he had endure the exact same thing.

 

Despite the tender kisses he pressed to Bucky's hair, despite the soothing words he whispered into his ear, Steve could not ease the brunette's fears - however, he could not figure out why Bucky had worked himself up to such an extent over a stray cat.

 

It was early the next morning when the Vet entered the waiting room. Bucky had long since cried himself into an exhaused sleep, and Steve gently nudged his lover awake, and the brunette roused quickly, bloodshot eyes focusing on the doctor's face.

 

"He's critical yet stable for now." His voice was gentle. "If he can survive until tomorrow morning, he will pull through."

 

Bucky's body relaxed and he buried his face into Steve's chest, and the blonde sighed with relief.

 

He looked up at the vet, smiling slightly.

 

"I'd suggest taking him home. We'll call you if there are any changes."

 

Steve nodded, handing over his phone number and taking Bucky home.

 

øøøøø

 

Several days had passed since the incident at the vets. Bucky had taken to sitting beside the phone, holding his knees to his chest and simply staring at the phone, waiting for it's shrill cry to pierce the silence.

 

Steve sat next to him, wrapping his arms and a blanket around his lover's shoulders, holding Bucky close and pushing his nose into soft brown locks.

 

"Why didn't you tell me?" He asked gently, letting Bucky relax into his hold.

 

The ex-assassin was silent as he mulled over the question.

 

His eventual reply was timid, almost frightened.

 

"Because I didn't want to burden you further..."

 

Steve didn't reply, he merely kissed the crown of Bucky's head.

 

øøøøø

 

The call came early one afternoon, approximately ten days after Koshenya had been handed over to the vet.

 

The two had been kissing passionately on their shared bed, the blonde having successfully coaxed Bucky into coming to bed with him, and the two men had been enjoying each other's affection.

 

As soon as the phone rang, Steve was left kissing air as Bucky zipped away from beneath him and bolting into the living room and vaulting over the settee to reach the phone.

 

"Да?" He babbled, frowning.

 

"Mr. Barnes?" The vet's voice floated from the reciever.

 

"Да - yeah?" 

 

"Your cat is ready to be taken home."

 

øøøøø

 

Since bringing Koshenya home, Steve began to notice changes in Bucky's demeanour.

 

He was much happier, smiling more and actively seeking affection from Steve. He was gentle and tender with Koshenya; laughing as the cat, who was healing from his abusive past - much like Bucky - licked his finger or pounced on a ball the brunette so lovingly rolled for him to chase.

 

Every night, Bucky would curl up next to Steve, snuggling close while Koshenya slept on the small armchair that rest in the corner of their room, and Steve would protect his lover from the horrors of the night.

 

Steve - as weird as it sounded - felt as though he was in debt to Koshenya. The cat had taught Bucky compasion and love. Both were scarred on the outside, roughened and shaped from years of pain, but Koshenya had shown his lover that it was okay to seek affection, and that a little suffering was worth the love and support that he would eventually recieve.

 

His Bucky was so happy, and Steve had only Koshenya to thank.

 

He would buy Bucky a thousand cats if it kept the gorgeous smile on his lover's face.

**Author's Note:**

> Кошеня (Koshenya) is Ukranian for 'Kitten,' I believe. I wanted to use Russian, but the name didn't quite sit right, nor did the Romanian equivalent.
> 
> I would love to know what you think of this, especially as it was written fairly quickly - and in my distressed state.


End file.
